Gambia’s debt at over D10, 000 million Halifa Sallah discloses to National
Assembly

The National Assembly has been told that The Gambia’s debt, which was
described as huge last year has peaked to a tune of over ten thousand, three
hundred million dalasi (D10, 300, 000000). Making the revelation Halifa
Sallah the member for Serekunda Central stated that out of the amount, four
hundred and eighty-two million dalasis has been spent on the import of
agricultural commodities which is equivalent to 30 percent of the country’s
gross domestic product (GDP). He added that despite agriculture being the
mainstay of the country’s economy, Gambians are yet to be self-sufficient in
food as 42 percent of imports is on food, which can be produced in the
country.

Honourable Sallah further noted that although President Jammeh in his speech
to the National Assembly last week raised the issue of making the country a
manufacturing and exporting nation, yet no appraisal was made of the
country’s industrial potentials, which at the moment is only contributing 11
percent of the GDP. He added that he would have expected the president to
tell the Gambian people about the state of the former GPMB hence according
to him there must be a strong linkage between agriculture and processing in
order to reduce the import bill and increase the export bill so as to enable
the country become an export-oriented and manufacturing nation.

He added that although the government plans to make a private sector led
economy, if the necessary conditions are not in place there would be neither
private sector nor public sector development, which might result in
institutional accumulation. He also pointed out that the banking system was
expected to encourage investment in the production base of the economy but
in recent times, the banking system is not seriously involved in the
productive base of the economy notably in industry and agriculture. He noted
that the current problems of high interest rates being encountered by the
banking system has rendered it difficult to borrow money.

He observed therefore that there are indicators that the reserves of the
banking system is going down by 30.7 percent whiles the Central Bank’s
external reserve has declined by 12.1 percent due to high interest rates and
debt. Halifa stressed that the country’s debt is increasing, making it
imperative to examine The Gambia’s economic realities when initiating
projects. Also deliberating on the motion, Edrissa Samba Sallah member for
Sami called on government to implement the irrigated rice development
project in CRD North funded by the Kuwaiti government at a tune of 307
million US Dollars.

He also called on the government to put up processing plants and storage
facilities for vegetable gardeners. Mr. Sallah further appealed to the
government to provide ambulances to major health centres in the provinces,
where he said great difficulties are encountered in transferring patients to
referral hospitals. Meanwhile a one minute silence in the National Assembly
was observed for the late Fabakary Cham member for Kombo North Constituency
who died last week.



Cherno Jallow resigns as GPU S


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